Amtrak Route Boston to Chicago photo Boston Globe, cost between Springfield, MA and Chicago Round Trip: $300, time in transit: 27 hours, making a two day trip impossible
With a need to rein in spending, both real and political, the President has requested 53 billion dollars for a high speed rail project. Although one may be a proponent of Mass Transit, one also has to understand the consumer base in order for this particular system to be profitable, enough so that it does not consistently feed at the trough of the Federal Taxpayer. Amtrak, the national commuter rail system, has been funded and defunded under several administrations, most recently: In 1997, the request for additional funds was “Derailed in the House”(Los Angeles Times), in 2003 Amrak concluded it would last through the year 2003, but needed additional federal support to continue to run , (Lodi News Sentinel) and in 2008 the Senate Approved a Bill for additional funds for the DC metro of 1.5 Billion (WJLA)
The continued funding, and requests for funding throughout the years, is indicative of an organization that cannot control costs, or alternately cannot attract enough consumers to make it profitable. Options for travel in the Western Massachusetts area, for example, include buses, taxies, air and rail. The cost to ride the bus: a prepaid booklet of 20 tickets is $47.50, assuming a traveler is commuting to work via bus, allows for 10 days or two full weeks of travel to and from work. A sample schedule (here) shows that bus service begins at 6:25 in the morning and ends at 9:40 in the evening, with Saturday and Sunday services more limited, but still adequate. To fill a tank of gas at $3.05 per gallon (going rate as of today) regular unleaded, is approximately $39 for a 13 gallon tank, which depending upon the length of the drive, private transportation may be more affordable, (again depending upon one’s inner city commute).
Amtrak is a different story entirely: one find schedules from Springfield to Boston, ranging in price from $67 to $158, routed through New Haven, CT, and taking up to 4 hours to reach Bean Town. Unfortunately, the Thursday Schedule does not include a return that will allow one to go back and forth in one day. Assuming one could make a connection - that connection is an additional 67 dollars, pre-tax, the total trip to Boston for the day: $225. The 90 minute drive up the pike with tolls included, assuming one uses an entire tank of gas, is under $50. The Springfield to Boston corridor is fairly active; one would think that a Federally funded Rail system would provide adequate service back and forth within the business day to drum up some business.
One has to ask, would high speed add efficiency? It most certainly would have to increase fares in order to absorb the costs, making it as enticing as a trip to the City Dump.
The same trip by bus :(Peter Pan Bus Lines), offers 7 departure times on a weekday, beginning at 5:45 am, in Boston by 8:10, the return trip offers departures up to 8 pm, with a total cost of $44.
The private bus company, even with a rise in the cost of fuel, offers a) more choices for day commuters as well as b) a much lower fare (equivalent to driving, plus eliminating the need to pay for parking).
One has to ask again, would high speed rail be able to offer more choices, at a rate comparable to say, the bus?
There is a reason that the House Republicans are ready to ax the budget for Amtrak and the high speed rail – (North Jersey .com) – it does not make sense to continue to fund a program that is both inefficient and out of the price range for most of the populace.
Perhaps a better option would be to have the brain trust that runs Amtrak, find ways to schedule one day trips between say, two cities in the same very small state 90 miles apart, several time a day, while keeping costs in line for consumers. If those currently running the behemoth of the public rail cannot come up with reasonable solutions, then sell it to a private company that might make it as efficient and possibly as affordable as – taking the bus.
There is something special about the rails, no doubt about it; historically they are a great part of our nation’s history, and responsible for U.S. expansion. However, do high speed rails make sense? Possibly, if the corporation behind the railways were not tied to the Federal government, here, along with so many other facets of our current Bureaucratic state, are opportunities for private enterprise to get the job done right.
As to the Presidents (and Vice-President) fascination with high speed rails, it boils down to the old adage about boys and toys, the Chinese have a shinny high speed rail, we want one, whether it makes sense or no, it’s big, it’s shinny, it goes fast, what more do the taxpayers really need to know?
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